Friday, November 20, 2009

One of the high priorities on our own-a-house-list is to have a residence free of mice. We had them in Tahoe, which we learned is actually fairly common up in the mountains. However, the D.C. area is not the kind of place one would expect to find various kinds of wildlife. Since we moved here last year, our backyard has seen a woodpecker on steroids, a fox licking his balls on my patio, hordes of bowl-stealing squirrels, and of course the mice in our kitchen.

We have two cats, and I have to say that are the biggest waste of fluff and space I have every seen. They do nothing but eat crunchies and piss on my floor. They haven't done one thing to earn their keep, and if not for the fact that we shipped them from Sweden I would put them out on their hairy asses.

Earlier this week, in a half-hearted attempt to put toys in their rightful place, I meandered down the semi-cleared path through the playroom chucking toys into their proper bins. I went back and forth several times and finally noticed what should have been obvious save for all the other stuffed animals laying about. A dead mouse.

That's right. In my kids' playroom. A very dead, slightly-chewed little field mouse.

The grin on my face nearly split my cheeks. I called Hubbie in to document the momentous occasion. After ten years, we still can't figure out what motivated our big grey cat to kill this mouse. The only thing we can figure is that it must have been a suicide attempt. The cat was probably asleep, and the mouse forced its way into her mouth and tickled her tongue until it was gummed to death.

I am sure very few people are happy to see dead vermin in their house, but one dead mouse in the playroom is one less live mouse in my kitchen.

@Cristin: Rats are a whole other ball of wax. I know they can grow to the size of a VW. No thanks.

@Titanium: Great story! But, if my kids did it, that means they must have groomed it and licked the hell out of its head and neck. If my kids did it, I just don't want to know.

@Chamuca: That is just wrong! It should have been a $50 finders fee, disposal an added expense. Sorry your folks didn't hold to their end of the bargain! I can see how that smell would stay with you for a long time!

Thank goodness, we've never had a mouse issue (that I'm aware of at least). My dog would think they were toys and would likely end up killing them like that dog from the cartoons. "I have a friend. His name is George. I will pet him and squeeze him and love him and hug him. I had another friend, but he don't move no more."

Contributors

Limning

There is a lot of stupidity in this world, and I have about had enough. I have a lot to say and in all fairness to those who know and love me, I am putting it all right here. I have another blog that is just for my regular family and friends. Pictures of the kids, sweet little paragraphs detailing their activities and the like. THIS blog is for me. Not my kids, not my parents. This is where we get to the meat of the matter. I am tired of smiling in the face of people and thinking WHAT THE FUCK? I know that I do not think or believe the way many of the sheep out there seem to. This blog proves it.

Gears and Cogs

Our Attempts At A Green Lifestyle:

We try to use cloth napkins or kitchen towels instead of paper towels when we clean up

I switched to a smaller coffee maker. There is less wasted coffee, there is a shorter brew time, and it therefore uses less engergy

We attempt to grow plants

I use a menstrual cup. Safer for me, cleaner for the environment

We get lots of hand-me-down toys and clothes and we pass everything along

We use FreeCycle and shop at thrift shops

I breastfed each child

My husband walks to work when he can

Instead of clay litter, we use cat sand made from wheat. Also from pine. In a happy accident, we found that by combining the two, we get better clumpage, less smell, and do not worry if the kids end up with a little in their mouths

We unplug other appliances like coffee makers, etc.

We have our media on the wall switch and turn it off at night. That makes SEVEN appliances that are turned off--not just on standby